Most people who know me, know how I feel about taglines for voice over artists: They are mostly self-indulgent without really contributing to the talent’s brand or image. Plus they can be damaging in some ways. Imagine if I described my voice as “hip, cool and Gen-x”. Kind of puts me in a box, doesn’t it? It doesn’t tell the reader that I’m also conversational and guy-next-door and middle-aged and sarcastic. In short, a tagline that describes your voice can be limiting much in the same way that if you say “The e-learning voice talent”, you’re making it an uphill battle for someone to hire you for anything other than e-learning.
There are exceptions. I’ve seen the words “hip” successfully put into a branding campaign (“The Hip Chick Voice” and “The Voice of Cool”). And I’ve seen the three descriptive word taglines that are effective because they convey info that is actually useful: “Multi-lingual, Urban, Union”. True, not exactly exciting, but it tells a lot more than “Experienced, cool, and awesome”.
And if you’re rhyming “voice” and “choice”, you’re not showing much creativity.
I’ve seen websites go into great lengths on their front page telling me about their vocal stylings and then say “Listen to my reels so you can hear!” Ok, if I’m going to listen to your reels, there’s no reason to tell me what I’m about to hear. Your reels should be your tagline! Put those front and center and let the hiring client decide if your hip enough or cool enough for his product.
Agree or disagree in the comments!